Stop motions for looping machines



April 1, 1958 D. R.IVESTER STOP MOTIONS FOR LOOPING MACHINES Filed p 8, 1955 INVENTOR. 1- [0 82 8/,

I ATTORNEYS.

STOP MOTIONS FOR LOOPING MACHINES Douglas R. Ivester, Winston-Salem, N.

Hones Hosiery Mills Company, a corporation of North Carolina Application September 8, 1955, Serial No. 533,094 2 Claims. (Cl. 112-219) C., assiguor to ing to close the toe pockets. It has been found that the stop mechanisms, as conventionally constructed and arranged in such machines, cannot always be relied upon to function with certainty upon rupture of either or both of the seaming threads, to stop the machines, especially when the threads are subjected to very high tension for close seaming.

The chief aim of my invention is to overcome the above pointed out drawback with a view toward preventing maloperation of the machines and spoilation or injury to several stocking blanks which invariably results if thread rupture occurs and is not immediately noticed by the machine operator upon failure of the stop mechanism to function.

How this objective is realized in practice will appear from the following detailed description of the attached drawings, wherein:

Fig. 1 is a fragmentary view, in perspective, of a conventional type of looping machine embodying its stop motion improved in accordance with my invention; and

Fig. 2 is a view generally similar to Fig. 1 but drawn to a larger scale for better illustration of important details.

The looping machine herein illustrated is generally of conventional construction in that it has an overhang bracket 1 with its anchorage base 2 bolted to a work table 3. The intermittently rotated dial 4 is supported in suspension at the distal end of the bracket 1 and, as usual, is provided at its periphery with bits or points 5, whereon the loops along opposite edge segments of the toe pocket openings of stocking blanks for example are impaled in a well known manner for seaming, the seaming being accomplished, likewise in a well known manner, with threads T and T' ply packages P and P and manipulated by the needle and the cooperative hook designated 6 and 7 respectively. Also as usual, the needle 6 and the hook 7 derive their movements, through interposed instrumentalities partly shown, from a horizontal shaft 8 which is rotatively supported in upstanding bearings 9 and 10 on the anchorage base 2 of the bracket 1. At one end, the shaft 8 is provided with a clutch collar 11 which is shiftable into engagement with a loose pulley 12 belt connected to a drive source (not illustrated). Enroute from a supply package P, the needle thread T is directed through an eye 15 in the horizontal top portion of a guide tree 16 upstanding from the table 3, then through a notch in one end of an element commonly known as a knot Catcher 17 which is pivoted on the bracket 1 and which Winston-Salem, N. (1.,

taken from separate sup-' has an arcuate tail projection the knot catcher 17, the needle thread T is directed through an eye 18 in one end portion of a guide bar 19 fixed in a pendent part 20 of the bracket 1 for passage between a pair of spring-pressed tension disks 21 supported on said arm. Spaced from the disks 21 is a grooved wheel 22 about which the thread T passes and is diverted downwardly to a guide eye 23 on the needle carrying arm 25. From the eye 23, the yarn T passes through an eye 26 at the distal end of a spring take-up finger 26a, then through a notched guide 27 at the distal end of the arm 25, and finally to the eye of the needle 6. The hook thread T' is drawn from a separate supply package P and is. directed upwardly to another eye 30 in the top 16, then horizontally to an eye 31 in.

of the guide tree the opposite end portion of the guide bar 19, and then between-a pair of spring-pressed tension disks 32. After reeving between the disks 32, the hook yarn T overjgrooved wheel 33 and is directed to another eye 35 in the guide bar 19, then downwardly into the notch of a fixed guide 36 and then, through a notch 37 in the top ofv a fixed upright guide eye 38 at the top end of an upright spring take-up finger 38a disposed adjacent the guide 37a on said table. In reeving through the eye-38 of the take-up 38a, the yarn T is reversed in the direction of its travel to pass through a notch 37b in one side of the guide 37a and then directly to the hook 7. The usual stop motion of the machine includes a detector finger 40 which normally rests upon the needle yarn T in the interval between the disks 21 and the roll 22, while .the arcuate tail 17a of the knot catcher 17, previously referred to, engages said yarn from beneath. The detector finger 40 is secured to one end of a rock shaft 40a journalled in spaced bearing lugs 41 and 42 on a portion 43 fixed upon the top of the bracket 1, said shaft having an elongate Wedge cam 40b fast thereto between said bearings. Supported, with capacity for endwise as well as rotary movement in other bearings lugs 45 and 46 on the part 43 in parallel relation to the shaft 40a, is another rock shaft 47 having, at one end, a lateral projection 47a which rests upon the wedge cam 40b, and at the other end, a pendent trip lever 47b which, as presently explained, is adapted to be acted upon by a stud projection 48 of a rotary cam 48a on the shaft 8. The clutch collar 11 is arranged to be actuated by a medially fulcrumed lever 50 whereof the tail end is pivotally connected to one end of a shifter dog in the form of a bar 51 confined to endwise sliding movement in a boss 52 of the bracket 1, the other end of said bar being bent laterally and upward as at 51a into the path of the lever projection 47a of the shaft 47. Another medially fulcrumed trip lever 55 has a Weighted end 55a which normally rests upon the hook thread T in the interval between the tension disks 32 and the roll 33, and an arcuate end 55b which normally underreaches the needle thread T in the interval between the tension disks 21 and the roll 22.

Ordinarily, in the event that the needle thread T should rupture, slack of the thread will occur in the interval between the tension disks 21 and the roll 22, with the result that the detector finger 49 will drop and cause 48a on shaft 8. Upon encounter of the stud 48 with: 47 will be moved endwis e the trip lever 47b, the shaft when, eventually, the projection 47a of the latter will engage the upturned end 51:: of the slide bar 51 through which the arm 50 and the clutch collar 11 will be moved,

Patented Apr. 1, 1 958 17a. From the notch in passes 37a on the table 3, to an.

out 'of'engagement with the drive pulley 12 and the machine thereby stopped. If, on the other hand, the hook thread T should break, the weighted end 55a of the trip lever 55 will drop and, by the curved end 551') of said lever, the needle thread T in the interval between the tension disks '21 and theroll 22 will be lifted and displaced from beneath the detector finger 40 with the result that the machine will be stopped automatically in exactly the same way as above described. a The machine will also be stopped by pull of T upon the tripper 17 whereby, through the tail 17a of the latter, the thread will be lifted from beneath the detector finger 40.

Now, in practice, the stop mechanism of a machine constructed as above explained can not always be relied upon to function when very heavy tension is imposed upon the threads as required in some instances for assurance of perfect seaming, the weight of the parts 40 and 55 being insufiicient to cause stopping ofthe machine as intended. Upon failure of the machine to stop immediately upon rupture of either one or both of the threads, as many as four or five stockings might pass unlooped before being noticed by the operator, with consequent loss in production time. Furthermore, the action of the needle and the hook upon the fabric loops by continued operation of the machine after yarn. rupture, causes the loops to be pulled upward and misaligned. Defective stitches are formed incident to subsequent seaming, with consequent down grading in the quality of the stockings. Furthermore, in the event of overrunning of the machine after the thread rupture due to needle or hook bending or breakage, the broken or mutilated needle or hook will usually cause damage to the dial bits or points and necessitate shut down of the machine until necessary corrections can be made. Attempts have been made heretofore to overcome these difficulties by increasing the weight of the parts 40 and 55 but without success.

In order to make the tripping mechanism of the machine more positive and reliable in its action and overcome the various aforementioned drawbacks, I have simply connected the notched end of the knob catcher 17, by 'means of a cord or flexible wire 60, with a loop 26b in the take-up spring finger 26a for the needle thread T, and by another cord or flexible wire 61 with a loop 38b in the take-up spring finger 38a for the hook thread T. As shown, the cords or wires 60 and 61 underpass the fulcrum boss 25a of the needle carrier arm 25.

With the looping machine modified in accordance with my invention, it will be seen that, upon rupture of the needle thread T, a positive downward pull will be exerted upon the knot catcher 17 through the cord or wire 60 by the released takeup spring finger 26a, with consequent displacement of the span of the needle thread between the disks 21 and the guide roll 22 from beneath detector finger 40 by the tail 17a of said knot catcher to bring about stopping of the machine. Similarly, upon rupture of the'horizontal thread T, the knot catcher 17 will be positively pulled down, through the cord or Wire 61, by the released spring take-up finger 33a when, by the tail 17a of said knot catcher, the span of the needle thread T between the tension disks 21 and the roll 22 will be displaced from beneath the detector finger 40, as before, and the stop mechanism operated to stop the machine.

Having thus described my invention, 1 claim:

' 1. In a looping machine a drive shaft; a thread carrying needle actuated from the drive shaft; a take up spring for the needle thread; a pair of guides in horizontally spaced relation through which the needle thread is passed en route to the needle; a normally-engaged clutch associated with the drive shaft; a rotary element on the drive shaft having a laterally-projecting eccentrically disposed stud projection; a clutch-actuating lever connected to a a knot in the needle thread a posed between the .4. bar constrained to endwise sliding movement at right angles to the drive shaft and having an upward projection at its distal end; a normally-retracted endwise shiftable and rockable shaft at right angles to the drive shaft having, at one end thereof, a trip lever normally out of the path of the lateral stud projection of the rotary element on the drive shaft and a lateral arm at its opposite end; a second rock shaft at right angles to the drive shaft and disaforesaid bar and the endwise shiftable and rockable shaft having a cam thereon upon which the lateral arm of the endwise shiftable and rockable shaft bears, and a finger normally resting on the span of the needle thread between the guides; a pivoted element engaging the needle thread ahead of the guides as considered with respect to the direction of travel of the thread so as to be normally heldraised thereby, said element having a tail contacting the span of the needle thread from one side; and a flexible strand connecting the pivoted element with the take-up spring whereby, upon rupture of the needle thread a'nd'relaxation cf'the take-up spring, the pivoted element is drawn downward with attendant displacement by the tail of the latter, of the span of the needle thread from beneath the detector finger and consequent disconnection of the clutch through the intervening connections aforesaid and stopping of the machine.

2. In a looping machine a drive shaft; a thread carrying needle and a thread carrying looper actuated from the drive shaft; take-up springs respectively for the needle and looper threads; a pair of guides in horizontally spaced relation through which the needle thread is passed en route to the needle; a normally-engaged clutch associated with the drive shaft; a rotary element on the drive shaft having a laterally-projecting eccentrically disposed stud projection; a clutch-actuating lever connected to a bar constrained to'endwise sliding movement at right angles to the drive shaft and having an'upward projection at its distal end; an endwise shiftable and rockable shaft at right angles to the drive shaft having at one end thereof a trip lever normally out of thepath of the lateral stud projection of the aforesaid rotary element on the drive shaft and a lateral arm at its opposite end; a second rock shaft at right angles to the drive shaft and disposed between the aforesaid bar and the endwise shiftable and rockable shaft having a cam thereon upon which the lateral arm of the endwise shiftable and rockable shaft bears and a finger normally resting on the span of the needle thread between the guides; a pivoted element engaging the needle thread ahead of the guides as considered with respect to the direction of travel of the needle thread so as to be normally held raised thereby, said element having a tail contacting the span of the needle thread from one side; a flexible strand connecting the pivoted element with the take-up spring whereby,

-upon rupture of the needle thread and relaxation of the take-up spring, the pivoted element is drawn downward with attendant displacement by the tail of the latter, of the span of the needle thread from beneath the detector finger and consequent disconnection of the clutch through theintervening connections aforesaid and stopping of the machine; a second pair of guides between which the looper thread is passed from a source of supply to the looper; and a trip lever engaging the span of the needle thread from beneath and having a weighted tail normally resting on the looper thread between its guides whereby, upon rupture of the looper thread, the span of the needle thread is'displaced from beneath the detector finger and the clutch is disconnected, as before, through the aforesaid intervening connections to stop the machine.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,776,473 Paxton Sept. 23, 1930 

